What interesting things can happen....such as this story.

A lady in Ohio thanked me immensely for putting some stagecoach history on the web and said how happy she was to discover it as she googled around. She wrote that she had "many years ago acquired" 4 stereoscopic cards which she had found fascinating and stored them away. In taking them out she had no idea where they were from and had never been near "Hornellsville and Wellsville" so she googled the towns and "Stagecoaches" and came up with my website. When she found the towns and read a little more on website she discovered she really had some interesting pictures and wanted to share the fact that she enjoyed them much more after reading about the town and the Hotels which are now gone, Howell House (last known as Pickups Hotel, burned down) and Fassett House, torn down. I acknowledged and specifically asked her for possibility of copies....she responded she was 70 years old and didn't know how to send attachments in the email process so would take them to her local UPS store who were good at copying other photos for her in the past, please give her my mailing address if I trusted her.

She then decided to send the originals for my use and they now reside in the Thelma Rogers Historical Society possession at Wellsville, NY.

The results are below:

Above, Howell House circa 1870s - Main Street, Wellsville, NY

Above is backside identifying the Howell House

Above, Fassett House, recently torn down after fire, now a vacant lot next to the Pizza Hut Restr.

Backside of Card Identifying Fassett House.

An improved version of the stereoscope card photo in B&W.

Main Street, Wellsville NY.

An improved version in B&W of Howell House.  Main Street Wellsville, NY

Thank you for sharing these photo cards.

Owego & Bath

Mail  Stage

(Twice A Week)

  This line will commence running twice a week, after the 1st of April next, --Days of starting and arrival as follows:

---Leave Owego on Tuesdays & Saturdays, at 6 a.m. & breakfasting at Athens, arrive at Elmira at 6 p.m.

---Leave Elmira on Wednesdays and Sundays, at 4 a.m. and breakfasting at Painted Post, arrive at Bath at 6 p.m.

  RETURNING--Leave Bath on Tuesdays & Saturdays, at 4 a.m. and breakfasting at Painted Post, arrive at Elmira at 6 p.m.

---Leave Elmira on Wednesdays and Sundays at 4 a.m. and breakfasting at Athens, arrive at Owego at 6 p.m.

  This line of stages intersects the Newburg and Canandaigua line at Owego--the Southern line, at Tioga Point--and the Geneva line at Bath----at which latter place it also intersects a line leading directly to Angelica, situate about 30 miles from Olean, one of the places of embarkation on the Allegany river, and about 18 miles from Oil Creek, the nearest place of embarkation, and which empties into the Allegany at Olean; at which place boats of any size are always kept ready for travelers, for the purpose of descending the Ohio River.

  Persons traveling from New York, or from any of the Eastern States, to the S. W. States, will find this the shortest, cheapest, and most expeditious route.  The distance from New York, via Owego, Painted Post and Bath, to Angelica, is 316 miles, which is performed in about 5 days.

  Good teams and careful drivers will be kept on the route, and no pains spared to accommodate passengers.  The Stage horses are good.

S. B. LEONARD - March 30, 1819

---

A daily stage (Sunday excepted) operated between Cuba and Rushford from about (162.  ?probably 1862) It left Rushford for Cuba at 5:30 a.m. arrived in Cuba for the 8:34 a.m. express west. It left Cuba on arrival of the mail train at 3:24 p.m., reached Rushford at 6:45 p.m. This stage coach apparently delivered the mail from the Rawson Post Office. Lyndon residents received their mail from the Rawson Post Office. At one time each resident took their turn carrying the mail from Rawson to the Lyndon Post Office. Sometime it was carried on horseback.

 

 

Submitted by Richard Palmer

From: Centennial History of Nunda, N.Y. , 1808-1908. Edited by H.
Wells Hand. Published by Rochester Herald Printing.

Page 617

Our First Stage Routes, Proprietors and Stage Drivers

     The very first stage route through from Leicester to Angelica previous to the completion of the State Road, must have passed over the River Road.
     After 1827, it may have come through Nunda, but it is doubtful if it came before then, as the settlement was too small to warrant it, and the post office was in Portage till then.
     Our first stage driver that has been mentioned was Matt Jackson an older brother of Leonard Jackson of this place. This must have been after the first post office came to "Nunda Valley." He was not the first driver, but possibly the first stage driver from Nunda.
     William Martin was the best known of the early stage drivers, his four horse establishment would attract more attention today than a dozen automobiles. His route was from Mt. Morris to Angelica and Belvedere. Another route was from Nunda to Pike. In his youth Robert Wright drove stage for Britton & Co. to Pike, this was probably sixty years ago. 
     Strange and almost incredible is the fact that there was a stage line from Hornell, then Hornellsville, to Attica passing through Nunda Valley, until the railroad between those two places was built in 1852 and the proprietors lived in Nunda, and sent out their stages in both directions, and from Mt. Morris to Angelica. They had the whole job in every direction, Seranus Button and his brothers-in-law, William Martin, Charles and William Russell, and, I believe, Hiram Grover, constituted this firm. The Jacksons, Wright, and William G. Russell and probably Joseph Britton were the drivers.
     After railroad days the stage business from Hornell to Attica stopped, but not until our railroad was completed was it discontinued to Mt. Morris. William H. Smith, now of Rochester, was the driver. Almiron Paine had the route to Nunda station or Dalton, nearly as long as he lived, his son Allie was his successor. John Hughes had it for a time, the Whites until the present year and Frank Carter and son Allen are now carrying the mail, passengers and freight between Nunda and Dalton.
     The transfer route to West Nunda has been chiefly conducted by Mrs. Mattie Herrick, and is now conducted by William Niew.